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Zoo Station
A Novel
Book - 2011
By 1939, Anglo-American journalist John Russell has spent over a decade in Berlin, where his son lives with his mother. He writes human-interest pieces for British and American papers, avoiding the investigative journalism that could get him deported. But as World War II approaches, he faces having to leave his son as well as his girlfriend of several years, a beautiful German starlet.
When an acquaintance from his old communist days approaches him to do some work for the Soviets, Russell is reluctant, but he is unable to resist the offer. He becomes involved in other dangerous activities, helping a Jewish family and a determined young American reporter. When the British and the Nazis notice his involvement with the Soviets, Russell is dragged into the murky world of warring intelligence services.
When an acquaintance from his old communist days approaches him to do some work for the Soviets, Russell is reluctant, but he is unable to resist the offer. He becomes involved in other dangerous activities, helping a Jewish family and a determined young American reporter. When the British and the Nazis notice his involvement with the Soviets, Russell is dragged into the murky world of warring intelligence services.
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Publisher:
New York : Soho Crime, 2011.
ISBN:
9781569479711
1569479712
1569479712
Characteristics:
293 pages ; 20 cm.
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Add a CommentA good read. An English journalist living in Berlin becomes a reluctant spy both for the Soviets and the British in pre-war Germany. I liked that the espionage wasn't "kill the Fuhrer" level, just information that is useful for defense or preparation. Still risky, but more believable. There was another part of the story involving Jews trying to flee Germany that factors into the climax of the story. I enjoyed it and would like to continue the series, but the library doesn't have the next two books in the series.
This work is a great character study which also captures a taste of life in Nazi Germany at the beginning of 1939. It follows the evermore complicated situation of John Russell, a British-born journalist with an American mother, his German ex-wife and 12 year old son being raised in German society, along with his German girlfriend. He is a veteran of the Great War but has no real allegiance to Britain or America and despises the Nazi regime; he is also a former Communist sympathizer (but none of this is ever fully explained or explored). As events start to invade his own social circle, he is reluctantly drawn into a world of intrigue after he is approached by an old Soviet contact. In his professional life he is privy to a lot of information, but has chosen to suppress the dark side of the Nazi repressions in order to maintain his legal status as a foreign correspondent in order to maintain contact with his son. As he explains to an idealistic American colleague, he is one of 75 million people trying to keep their heads down.
Excellent read about pre-WWII Berlin. I am looking forward to reading the other books in the series.
An excellent, well-crafted LeCarre-style thriller. Very immersive with good characters and plot and very well researched (sometimes to the point of distraction). Not exactly riveting and the author loses steam from time to time but still very engaging and worth reading.
Not bad, but not Alan Furst, either in terms of characters, plotting, or historical atmosphere of the European pre-war era. Try him!
This is gripping historical fiction -- a must-read for anyone wanting to see pre-war Germany.